Chills

Has this ever happened to you? You are listening to a moving piece of music or a gripping poem and suddenly you get goosebumps?

In this study, we will examine what happens in your body and your brain during these moments. We measure goosebumps using a special camera (the “goosecam”), which is attached to the lower arm or the lower leg. This way, we can pinpoint exactly when you experience goosebumps.

Are you interested in taking part in this study? Can you remember 5 musical pieces and 5 poems that always give you goosebumps? Then write us an email to the following address: chills@ae.mpg.de

Here is the movie about the study:

Details on the procedure

The study is divided into three parts. In the first part, we collect bodily signals such as skin conductance and heart rate, which we measure using sticky sensors attached to the skin while you listen to your music and poetry. This part will take place at our institute (Grüneburgweg 14).

In the second part – at the Brain Imaging Center in Niederrad – we will use magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in order to monitor brain activity during goosebumps moments. For this two-part MRI session it is important not to have any permanent non-removable metal parts in your body (e.g. pacemaker, metal implants, etc.). MRI uses magnetic fields in order to localize brain areas that are particularly active in specific moments. MRI is safe and non-invasive, and involves no injections or radiation (as you might know from medical check-ups).

For the third part of the study (back at Grüneburgweg 14) we are interested in the emotions that you experience. Here you will be asked to fill out questionnaires and rating scales about your emotional experiences while listening to music and poetry.

Each part of the study takes about 2 hours. For your participation in the entire study we will pay you a compensation of 150 Euro. If you have any questions please do not hesitate to write us using the email address given above.